Music, a part and parcel of Indian films plays a big role in the ever-growing popularity of the medium and playback singers are as much stars like those who appear on screen. And one of the top names is Balu.

He had held sway and continues to do so for years as a top-notch singer in films in many Indian languages like Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam the ‘lingua franca’, Hindi, Tulu, Oriya, Assamese and Punjabi.

Balu, who has recently celebrated his 60th birthday, has sung over a staggering 39,000 plus songs in a span of 39 years, in most Indian languages which include several albums of contemporary Indian music, private albums for devotional songs and movies, which is a world record, as acknowledged by the Guiness Book of World Records.

SP Balasubrahmanyam has bagged the National Award for the best playback singer, a staggering SIX times. His award haul started with the semi-classical movie, ''Sankarabharanam' (Telugu-1979) followed later by a number of awards in other languages, and ending with a 'Padmashri' by the Government of India.

It is a rare achievement to be on the top of the South Indian film music scene for over three decades and also to prove that his voice is suitable for Hindi cinema as well, with all-time Bollywood hits like 'Maine Pyar Kiya', 'Saajan', 'Roja', 'Hum Aap Ke Hain Kaun', etc. to name a few.

His close association with a lot of hit Bollywood films starring Salman Khan got his Bollywood fans to refer to him affectionately as \"The Voice of Salman Khan\".

MITHAS, the premier non-profit cultural organization that has been bringing South Asian performing arts to the Greater Boston area, is now presenting S.P. Balasubrahmanyam and S.P. Shailaja along with a huge orchestra of 12 performers to the light music lovers in the Greater Boston area on the 10th of September 2006 at the Natick High School.

The concert will be followed by an exclusive dinner banquet with SPB himself at the Dakshin Restaurant in Framingham.

\"This is a fundraiser for MITHAS and a great opening for our fall series concerts involving a lot of classical musicians and singers from South Asia. We are requesting the musicphiles in the Boston area to support us generously and enjoy this unique once in a lifetime opportunity to see your favorite artist perform and dine with him\" said Mr. Rajaram Narayanaswamy, President of MITHAS.

MITHAS seeks to enrich the cultural environment in the Greater Boston area and endow our children with the benefits of regular exposure to the great South Asian heritage of performing arts, and to preserve and present of these arts to our community and the greater New England Area.

WHAT: Live film music concert by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam, S.P. Shailaja and a 12-member orchestra with songs from various hit movies in major South Indian languages, including a lot of hit Bollywood songs sung by SPB.

WHERE: Natick High School. Dinner Banquet with the artist at Dakshin Restaurant, Framingham.

WHEN: 10th September 3PM

TICKETS: http://www.mithas.org.

Please send an email to MITHASRAFFLE@lokvani.com with ‘LokVani Raffle’ in the subject line. Please provide your Name and Mailing Address. We will select a winner at random each Friday through September 8 and give away 2 free tickets to each week's winner. One entry per family, please.
Share your excitement with others, and mark your calendars for Sunday, September 10, 2006, 3 PM; Venue - Natick High School Auditorium. Spend the day with family and friends to hear your favorite songs in many languages. Enjoy the rest of the evening at a banquet dinner with your favorite singer and his crew at Dakshin, Framingham, after the program.

For people in the New England area who are tired of the hustle-bustle of their daily monotonous routine and want to enjoy a quiet weekend in the company of their family, Berkshires offer an ideal option.
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